


A Peek at the Cooking Pot

by Anyjen



Category: xxxHoLic
Genre: Angst, Fluff, Food, Gen, Humor, M/M, Sexual Humor, Spring, silly stuff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-20
Updated: 2015-07-27
Packaged: 2018-04-05 06:20:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 4,425
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4169220
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anyjen/pseuds/Anyjen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sometimes funny, sometimes angsty, sometimes smutty, often fluffy, this is a collection of different drabbles and ficlets in the XXXholic universe that I wrote as excercises to jump-start my inspiration or as a gift to different people.</p><p>Ch 1: There was a reason Watanuki hated April Fool's Day...<br/>Ch 2: Doumeki had a very special kind of gluttony...<br/>Ch 3: Watanuki fumes. And rants. Possibly while cooking.<br/>Ch 4: Sometimes, having cold hands was a disadvantage.<br/>Ch 5: Doumeki can cook, too.<br/>Ch 6: Watanuki doesn’t like rain.<br/>Ch 7: Normally, Doumeki enjoyed watching Watanuki clean...<br/>Ch 8: Watanuki doesn't scream much at Doumeki these days.<br/>Ch 9: Doumeki had a rather disturbing way of saying hello...<br/>Ch 10: Watanuki wasn't going to be fooled by Doumeki's evil schemes.<br/>Ch 11: Watanuki was getting tired of the weird things in his life.<br/>Ch 12: Watanuki had grown up shielding himself.<br/>Ch 13: Some things, you're better off not knowing.<br/>Ch 14: Doumeki wasn't sure how he felt about the changes that had befallen Watanuki</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. April Fool

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> There was a reason Watanuki hated April Fool's Day...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: G
> 
> Pairing: none
> 
> Note: originally written as a response to challenge in the DouWata section of the Clamp’s Anon Meme.

Watanuki hated his birthday. Or rather, he liked his birthday, but hated the holiday that was celebrated _on_ his birthday.

The funny thing was, he wouldn’t have had reason to hate it if he hadn’t had reason to like it in the first place.

For, you see, Watanuki had always been a very lonely child. Growing up without your parents or any close relatives will do that to you. 

This state of affairs had lasted until the exact moment he set foot on a certain drunken woman’s shop. From that moment on, he had come to be in the company of so many people that he sometimes couldn’t even hear his own thoughts. Bellowing at the top of your lungs for Mokona to stop stealing food from the kitchen, Yuuko to stop drinking like a fish, and _you started eating without waiting for the others again, you damn impatient glutton of an archer wannabe_! will do that to you, too.

Fortunately for him, knowing that many people meant that he had a lot of people to celebrate his birthday with. Having other people around to share in the beauty of the coming of spring and the promise of new life and new opportunities was a simple pleasure that he would never tire of.

Unfortunately for him, knowing that many people also meant that he now had a lot of people willing to give him hell for having been born on the one day of the year when people were supposed to forgive their friends, rivals, evil drunken employers, and maddening black buns when they decided to play practical jokes on them.

The irony of it all was that _it wasn’t even a Japanese holiday_.

Trust Yuuko to import a foreign holiday when it was the perfect excuse to torture him.


	2. Gluttony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Doumeki had a very special kind of gluttony...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: G
> 
> Pairing: none, or very light Doumeki/Watanuki
> 
> Notes: Written as thanks to astrokender for the lovely drabble she wrote for me

Most people that cook will tell you that it’s one of the greatest pleasures in the world to have somebody else eat your food. Even if it is rather frustrating to spend hours slaving away in the kitchen only to have the fruit of your labour inhaled in less than ten minutes, there is something really satisfying in seeing that not a single scrap of food was spared in the culinary massacre. It makes doing the dishes an easier task, too.

However, there comes a point in any cook’s life when the lack of appreciative words -even the lack of appreciative _sounds_ \- in reference to their food will send them into an irrational rage. For Watanuki, this happened once or twice a day.

Not surprisingly, most of his rage attacks were brought on by the lack of appreciation from a certain inexpressive, ungrateful, glutton of a permanently bored-looking teenager.

He thought it his duty to educate the rude jerk on proper table manners. He couldn’t help but feel sorry for Doumeki’s mother if this was the way he behaved every time he took a meal.

However, the first time Watanuki was invited to the Doumeki family temple for a home-made meal -that wasn’t actually prepared by him- he made a mind-boggling discovery, which was only confirmed on the few occasions that they dined out. When it came to food prepared by anybody else, Doumeki was actually able to eat at a more reserved pace, never failed to say the proper prayers, and even indulged in polite conversation.

It turns out, it was only _his_ food that was able to reduce Doumeki to voracious, impolite gluttony. For some reason, this failed to make Watanuki angry. He attributed it to spring and let Doumeki’s lack of table manners go from then on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In Japan, “spring” (as in, the season) is often used in literature instead of “love”, “youth”, and (my, my!) “sex”. ;)


	3. The Lesser of Two Evils

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Watanuki fumes. And rants. Possibly while cooking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Word count: 305 
> 
> Rating: PG
> 
> Note: Slightly less polished than other drabbles

There were times when Watanuki wondered whether it wouldn't actually be easier to just learn to live as somebody with "tasty treat for spirits" written on his back than trying to get rid of said caption on his back.

After all, having to make a desperate dash for his life or having to endure the weight of a particularly annoying glob of slimy ayakashi on his shoulders might not be so unpleasant compared to some of the things Yuuko put him through with the incentive of "reducing his debt".

And oh, but he didn't need to do it all by himself, of course! He could have help! Here, just let me call the Doumeki temple...

Help, hah fucking hah! True, Doumeki did keep the spirits at a comfortable distance... most of the time. But the price for that sometimes seemed not worth it.

That was what Watanuki was thinking as he, once again, was forced to endure the humiliation of having his scrawny ass saved by the ever-annoying and incredibly obnoxious youngest member of the Doumeki family... and receiving an incredibly implausible food request as a result. Didn't the bastard know that it isn’t really that easy to find eggplants for eggplant miso soup in the middle of the summer?

Why oh why couldn't he simply be eaten and be done with it already? Oh, no. He had to go shop for goodness knows what stupid thing the idiot Kyuudo practitioner had requested  _ this _ time, and slave away on his kitchen to prepare it in insane amounts. Insane amounts which Doumeki almost invariably ate all by himself, regardless of whether or not that had been their intended purpose. Keep it that way, and the guy would be weighing a solid twenty stone by the time he reached twenty. At least _that_ was a heart-warming thought...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Glossary and cultural notes:
> 
> Ayakashi: ghosts, evil spirits... that kind of stuff  
> Miso: Traditional Japanese food made of fermenting rice, barley and/or soy beans. Miso soup is made of paste of miso, fish and vegetables and it is traditional to have it at breakfast.  
> Kyuudo: Japanese longbow archery  
> Twenty stone: 127 kg, roughly 280 lb


	4. Cold Hands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes, having cold hands was a disadvantage.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: PG-13
> 
> Pairing: Watanuki/Doumeki
> 
> Note: And this one begged to be written even as I gave the same prompt ("cold hands") to astrokender .

Watanuki had cold hands. He wasn’t entirely sure why, though he suspected that all the time he spent with his arms sunk to the elbows in soapy water -doing the dishes, washing Yuuko’s most delicate clothes or wringing cleaning rags- had something to do with it. Maybe he simply had poor blood circulation, which would also explain why he was so pale. Anyway, it didn’t really matter why, the fact remained that his hands seemed stuck at glacial-cold temperatures all year round. While this was a very nice feature to have when Yuuko’s antics or Doumeki’s absurd food requests threatened to make him develop the mother of all migraines and he wanted something cool over his eyes, it also had its disadvantages.

When it was time to knead bread, for instance, it was very discouraging to realize that, instead of helping it rise, his cold hands actually deflated the dough, which needed the warmth to grow big and fluffy.

The first time he tried to give Doumeki a handjob, he discovered that there was one other thing that needed warmth to rise properly. The startled yelp that escaped the lips of the otherwise impassive teenager when Watanuki’s hands found their target was extremely satisfying. The natural physiological reaction to having cold hands in contact with a very sensitive body part, was not quite. Turns out it wasn’t only bread dough that deflated pathetically when kneaded with freezing hands.

Watanuki took offence. It was weeks before he took the initiative to venture past the waistline of Doumeki’s trousers again. When he did, he warmed his hands in the stove first, to much more satisfying results this time.

Of course, that gave Doumeki the bright idea of proposing they have sex in the kitchen from then on. Watanuki bought hand warmers instead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "Hand warmers" (also called “pocket warmers”) in Japan are these handy little palm-sized bags of a jelly-like substance that heats up almost magically when you press them for a few seconds (actually it's because of a chemical reaction). You keep them in your pockets or inside your mittens, and presto! instant warm hands. They’re very common in Japan, so much so that I forgot that, even if you can get them almost anywhere (if you know where to look), not many people have heard of them outside of the country of the rising sun.


	5. Senbei

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Doumeki can cook, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: G (K)  
> Pairing: none, or very light Doumeki/Watanuki (interpret as you wish)  
> Words: 300  
> Notes: Slight spoilers for chapters 175/176. Written for themusicliveson

“Here.”

Watanuki glares at the lumpy package that was thrust an inch from his nose. 

“What is it?”

Doumeki makes a sound that Watanuki interprets as “I can’t believe you can’t tell just by looking at it.” Watanuki would strangle him for being such a presumptuous git, but he’s too busy glaring at the untidy mess of paper and string. 

“You ate Kunogi’s cookies,” is all Doumeki offers as explanation.

“You ate them, too,” grumbles Watanuki, cautiously poking the package with a finger, as if half-expecting it to blow up in his face.

“I can cook, too.”

Watanuki freezes when he is about to poke it again. He slowly drags his eyes from the brown _thing_ in Doumeki’s hand to Doumeki’s face, which looks slightly scrunched up in annoyance.

“You made _cookies_?!”

“No.” Doumeki seems slightly offended by the notion. “They’re senbei.”

Oh. Of course. Doumeki isn’t all that fond of sweet stuff... _but that’s not what’s wrong with the picture_!

Doumeki is looking at him expectantly, so Watanuki heaves a great sigh and attacks the poorly-wrapped package.

He gets it open -grumbling about poor food-packaging skills- and pops one of the misshapen rice crackers into his mouth.

It’s not dry enough, it has entirely too much salt, and is quite possibly the worst senbei Watanuki has ever encountered. It’s also unmistakeably hand-made, and Watanuki knows just how much work goes into making the deceptively simple-looking snacks. 

“They’re awful.”

Those words seem to get Doumeki on the defensive, but Watanuki snatches the open package before Doumeki can get it out of reach.

He turns to resume walking home and pops another one in his mouth, chewing thoughtfully.

“...thank you.”

Doumeki doesn’t say anything, and Watanuki doesn’t turn to confirm it, but he’s pretty sure that the insufferable jerk is smirking.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Senbei: Japanese rice crackers, which can be sweet, salty, spicy and come in practically any flavour. They’re made by being baked or grilled, traditionally over charcoal. They’re the ones Doumeki was eating in both OADs, and yes, they make that much noise while being eaten, if they’re dry enough. XD


	6. Rain

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Watanuki doesn’t like rain.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rating: PG-13 (T)  
> Pairing: Doumeki/Watanuki  
> Words: 300  
> Notes: written for XxxblackpearlxxX. Kinda spoilers for chapter 159.

Watanuki doesn’t like rain.

He thinks, maybe, just maybe, that once, he liked rain. Once, long ago, he must have liked to snuggle against the comfort and warmth that was a parent, and listen to the rain, but now, all he can think about when it rains is the cold, and the grey, and the loneliness.

Doumeki doesn’t say anything, and he never asks, but when it rains, he skips archery practice and walks Watanuki home.

Watanuki doesn’t say anything, and he never asks, but he accepts the silent comfort and doesn’t complain about having to share an umbrella.

Sometimes, though, it’s not enough. Sometimes, the rain makes something inside him clench in pain, and he can’t think, and he can’t breathe, because it hurts too much.

Those times, Doumeki doesn’t say anything, either. He just grabs Watanuki by the elbow and finds a secluded spot, far from prying eyes, and kisses the rain out of Watanuki’s eyes and out of Watanuki’s heart.

Sometimes, though, sometimes it’s not enough, and Watanuki craves more, _needs_ more, and it’s desperate, and raw, but Doumeki doesn’t ask, doesn’t complain, he just complies.

Then it’s heat, and laboured breath, and racing hearts drowning out the sound of rain.

Then it’s release, and relief, and a silent company, freely given, that doesn’t pretend to understand, but it’s there nonetheless.

Then it’s quiet, and calm, and a cup of hot ginger tea offered without words, without questions, without explanations, but somehow it’s enough.

Sometimes, sometimes he can let go long enough to cross the distance between them first, and reach out for Doumeki without needing anything else to justify the closeness.

And when Watanuki is surrounded by the comforting warmth that is Doumeki, he thinks that maybe, just maybe, he can learn to like rain again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've wanted to write something like this ever since chapter 159 came out... it explained so many things...


	7. Stress Cleaning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabble: Stress Cleaning
> 
> Rating: PG (K+)
> 
> Pairing: Doumeki/Watanuki
> 
> Words: 300
> 
> Summary: Normally, Doumeki enjoyed watching Watanuki clean...
> 
> Notes: Written for smokexscribbles from LiveJournal. Slight spoilers for chapter 181-182

Doumeki watched Watanuki from where he was sitting, sipping sake contemplatively, almost lazily.

Watanuki was cleaning. Normally, he would be enjoying watching Watanuki clean. Watanuki was very fun to watch, as he put every ounce of his self into everything he did, and cleaning... well, he was very good at cleaning. It certainly didn't hurt that this activity also meant that Watanuki had to bend in all kinds of fascinating ways to be able to reach the lower shelves in Yuuko's storage room, or to sweep under the furniture. Doumeki didn't consider himself a pervert, but he wasn't  _blind_ , either.

The problem was, Watanuki had finished cleaning long ago, and was currently in the process of cleaning everything again. Considering the sheer size of Yuuko's shop and the amount of things it contained, this was no small feat.

Watanuki's face was scrunched up in concentration and flushed with exertion, tiny beads of sweat rolling down the side of his face and the back of his neck, but the sight didn't particularly appeal to Doumeki... not when he knew exactly what was making Watanuki behave in this way.

Watanuki was waiting, while he knew perfectly well that what he was waiting for would probably never come. He had no control over the wait, or the outcome, so he embraced an activity that he felt he had complete control over as a means to avoid being overwhelmed by it all. He really did have a way with housework, after all.

Without saying a word, Doumeki stood and grabbed Watanuki by the back of his apron. Ignoring Watanuki's splutters of indignation, which quickly turned into fierce exclamations of outrage, he proceeded to calmly but firmly drag Watanuki to the nearest bedroom.

There were better ways of getting rid of stress, in Doumeki's opinion.

* * *

**Remember that your reviews will always be highly appreciated. :)**


	8. Spilled Tea

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabbles: Spilled Tea
> 
> Rating: G (K)
> 
> Pairing: Very light Doumeki - Watanuki
> 
> Words: 300
> 
> Summary: Watanuki doesn't scream much at Doumeki these days.
> 
> Notes: written for sparklyfanta at LiveJournal. Spoilers for chapters 181-182

Watanuki doesn't scream much at Doumeki these days. But then, Watanuki doesn't do much of anything related to Doumeki these days.

Sometimes, Doumeki feels he should resent Yuuko. By disappearing, she reduced the very small number of Watanuki's acquaintances by one. It was unfair of her to teach Watanuki to create bonds with people only to sever one of them when this was achieved. Watanuki now spends his days torn between hope and mourning. In his mind, Yuuko was the very first person since his parents to care for him unconditionally, even if extravagantly.

Other times, Doumeki feels he should thank her. For the first time in Watanuki's life, he is free of the spirits that used to plague him, and he uses this freedom to visit each and every one of Yuuko's old acquaintances, talking to them, trying to convince them the mysterious woman really existed. He seems to believe that if enough people believe in her existence, then it will come true once more... just like him.

Yuuko's disappearance has convinced Watanuki that he has to live for both of them until her return.

At times, Doumeki feels he should fear Yuuko. Since Watanuki's wish was fulfilled, Doumeki is no longer a necessity in his life. Watanuki has friends now, and he spends his time visiting people, seeing people, talking to people. These days, Doumeki only trails behind him, unsure of his role in Watanuki's life, unsure of the task he has yet to perform...

So when Watanuki pours him tea and Doumeki reaches out and grabs his wrist, causing him to spill tea over the table, he doesn't know if he wants to make Watanuki scream at him again out of habit or sheer desperation.

Sometimes, Doumeki feels that the one that is disappearing may be himself.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This drabble doesn't fit with canon any longer, as I wrote it before the whole "stuck forever in the shop" debacle, but I'm still rather fond of it, even if it turned out a bit angstier than usual.


	9. PDA (Public Display of Affection)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabble: PDA (Public Display of Affection)
> 
> Rating: G (K)
> 
> Words: 300
> 
> Summary: Doumeki had a rather disturbing way of saying hello...
> 
> Notes: Pure fluff! Written for rodickparker on LiveJournal.

Since they started going out, Watanuki had made a few very interesting discoveries about Doumeki he would never have suspected otherwise.

For instance, there was the fact that he had no inhibitions, and absolutely no sense of TPO. If he didn't look so darn much like his late grandfather, Watanuki would suspect he was actually a foreigner that had been adopted into the Doumeki family. At least, that's the conclusion he reached when he was introduced to Doumeki's mind-boggling way of saying hello.

A normal, sensible Japanese teenager would say "good morning" and that would be it. Doumeki said "oi" and dived for a kiss. And it wasn't even a 'my-hormones-are-acting-up-and-I-want-to-snog-you' kind of kiss -Watanuki would have understood those, being a male teenager himself- but rather tiny, quick, and disturbingly cute pecks on the cheek, more suitable for a grade-school girl with a crush than a boy a few months shy of adulthood.

It wouldn't have been so bad had Doumeki not persisted on doing it regardless of where it was that he set eyes on Watanuki for the first time every day, or who may be the unfortunate witness to such a stomach-turning sugary way of greeting. Watanuki's neighbour still looked at him funny every time he crossed him in the hall, thanks to that unfortunate occasion Doumeki had picked him up at his apartment.

Watanuki's reflexes had improved a great deal due to this, because the only way to escape mortifyingly embarrassing contact with Doumeki's puckered-up lips was ducking and running like his life depended on it... by the time Doumeki caught up to him he had generally given up on the idea of a good-morning kiss.

The problem was, then Watanuki was too tired to dodge him when it was time for the see-you-later hug and snuggle...

* * *

**Notes: Just in case you weren't aware of it, public displays of affection are highly frowned upon in Japan... even those as harmless as hugging, holding hands or kissing on the cheek; much more so in the case of a homosexual couple. Trust Doumeki to not give a damn and do it anyway. ^^**


	10. The Top of the World

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabble: The Top of the World
> 
> Rating: PG-13 (T)
> 
> Pairing: Watanuki/Doumeki/Watanuki
> 
> Words: 300
> 
> Summary: Watanuki wasn't going to be fooled by Doumeki's evil schemes.
> 
> Note: written for shushu_yaoi in Livejournal.

When it came to their sexual lives, there was one area in which Watanuki felt that he couldn't win.

If Watanuki wanted Doumeki to give him a blowjob, Doumeki would say "okay," if Watanuki wanted to have sex outside the bedroom, Doumeki would say "fine," if Watanuki wanted to top, Doumeki would always, always say "go ahead."

Doumeki had no self-consciousness, no inhibitions, no sense of propriety and felt no embarrassment, plus he had no pre-conceptions about sex, gave a rat's ass about stereotypes and was always open to trying new things.

It was... infuriating in ways that Watanuki couldn't explain.

It made Watanuki feel inferior, somehow, that he was the one blushing like a virgin, stammering and being all elbows, burdened by self-consciousness and embarrassment, and fumbling clumsily his way in the sack when Doumeki simply let his body do the thinking.

It made him feel that the one really in control there was Doumeki, even if he always took the submissive role... if such a thing could be said about Doumeki's attitude in bed. If anything, Doumeki behaved as if there was nothing he'd rather be doing than what Watanuki wanted him to do... which Watanuki knew to be bullshit, since Doumeki never behaved that way about  _anything_  other than sex.

The only explanation Watanuki could come up with was that it was all part of a clever plan. After all, if Doumeki could convince Watanuki that being the bottom was fun, then it was all a matter of time until Watanuki wanted to try it, too, right?

But Watanuki had his number. He was not going to be fooled by such evil schemes! He, unlike Doumeki, had dignity! He had manly pride! He was the top!

...when Watanuki asked Doumeki to switch, Doumeki said "about time."

Bastard.


	11. Bad Food

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabble: Bad Food
> 
> Rating: G (K)
> 
> Pairing: none
> 
> Words: 302 (fail!)
> 
> Summary: Watanuki was getting tired of the weird things in his life.
> 
> Note: written for popkin16 at Livejournal

Watanuki was used to strange things happening around him, near him,  _to_  him. They'd been happening less and less with time, but when they did, they seemed to make up for lost time by reaching for new and wilder levels of weird.

Just the other day, for example, Watanuki had been confronted in his own bathtub by a very put-upon family of walking fish, who had accused Watanuki of destroying their home. Apparently, Watanuki had kicked a rock into a puddle the last time he had been fleeing some nightmarish horror or other. This would have been harmless had the puddle not been some sort of portal to a very old lake, at the bottom of which lived these walking, talking and currently fuming fish, and had the rock not landed squarely on top of said creatures' home, demolishing it in the blink of an eye.

It took Watanuki a whole weekend to build a miniature palace out of pebbles on his bath, which, it figures, was also connected to said lake. This finally appeased the anger of the fish, who had spent every second of its construction staring unblinkingly at him.

The towering golem made entirely of sushi which was currently beating down on his door, seemingly intent on bringing it down so he could exact vengeance for his felled friend, was pushing things, though. After all, how was he supposed to know that the thing's friend had decided to take a nap inside Doumeki's bento, and the stupid oaf had eaten it together with the ones Watanuki had made? And how exactly was that his fault, anyway?

As Watanuki piled every piece of furniture he owned against the door, he made the resolution that if Doumeki requested sushi again after this, he was going to be force-feeding him his schoolbag...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, now that I re-read this, I'm starting to feel sorry for the fish and the sushi golem... :P


	12. Broken Glasses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabble: Broken Glasses
> 
> Rating: G (K)
> 
> Pairing: none
> 
> Words: 300
> 
> Summary: Watanuki had grown up shielding himself.
> 
> Notes: written for ptit_lion at LiveJournal.

Watanuki had grown up shielding himself, carefully setting up barriers, mental and physical, to protect himself from the threats that accosted him daily.

There were ofuda in the corners of his apartment, plus one under the telephone, one over the door and several around the windows. At night, he slept curled up under the blankets, no part of him sticking out from the kekkai made of cloth and childish hope even in the summer. Watanuki always carried salt and several amulets with him, and he'd even memorized a few sutras to chant under his breath when he had to be outside after dark.

But the most important barrier was his glasses.

When he was wearing his glasses, he could convince himself that the world started beyond them, and that he ended where his glasses began. As long as he was wearing them, nothing could touch him.

When he lost his glasses, he felt stripped of each and every one of his barriers. He felt naked and exposed in a way that went beyond simply suffering from bad eyesight.

If he hadn't received half the sight of Doumeki's right eye, he probably wouldn't have been able to stand it. As it was, when he realized he could see perfectly well out of his right eye anyway, he felt a much stronger barrier in place.

It was the barrier of friendship, of trust, of people willing to be there for him no matter what. It was a protection much stronger than the ones he had so uselessly gathered around himself throughout the years.

These days, Watanuki can smile and walk at a sedated pace even when he's not wearing glasses because he knows that, no matter what happens, he is no longer alone...

And that is the strongest protection of them all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ofuda: paper charms to ward against evil... in all forms. There are even ofuda against mice... if you live in a paper-and-wood house, mice (who chew on both) can be pretty evil, I guess. ^^U
> 
> Kekkai: a magical barrier that separates a plane of existence from another (for more information, read Tokyo Babylon or X. :P). Many children in Japan believe that the covers of their bed can make a kekkai to protect them against evil spirits, and thus sleep curled up under them, taking care that not even a foot will poke out.


	13. TMI (Too Much Information)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabble: TMI (Too Much Information)
> 
> Rating: PG-13 (T)
> 
> Pairing: Watanuki/Doumeki
> 
> Words: 300
> 
> Summary: Some things, you're better off not knowing.
> 
> Note: I wrote this because I suddenly felt like explaining what was that mysterious thing Doumeki handed Watanuki in "The Words that Matter", which seemed awfully convenient but served to explain that Doumeki had had more than a few things in mind for that night – besides being almost killed and sending Watanuki into a panic attack with his questions, that is. You may or may not take it as part of the "Dreams and Realities" continuity. For popkin16 as a birthday drabble, because everyone should receive pr0n for their birthday! ^_-

Watanuki rolled from hand to hand the small pot containing the wonderful slippery substance that had made his sex life so much better. He had always taken it for granted before, being preoccupied with other matters at hand (cough!) but now that he thought about it he wondered where Doumeki was getting it.

Being in that happy, happy place called afterglow, he actually felt brave enough to ask about it.

"Where did you buy this stuff? It feels great, it's just the right consistency and it doesn't stink or smell too girly."

Doumeki didn't even look at him, and didn't even bother moving from where he was slumped face down on Watanuki's futon, which, Watanuki reflected, couldn't feel all that great considering he'd landed on his own wet spot.

"I didn't buy it."

Watanuki stopped playing with the pot long enough to send an intrigued look at the back of Doumeki's head, which took quite a while since his eyes decided to take the scenic route starting from Doumeki's feet.

"Oh?"

"I made it."

Everything would have been fine had Doumeki stuck to those words, but he apparently remembered Watanuki's request of a few weeks back for more detailed information because he suddenly turned to face his lover and added the words that would haunt Watanuki for many years to come, no matter how hard he tried to scrub them out of his brain.

"It was grandfather's special recipe."

Watanuki insisted they only use store-bought lube after that. It was either that, or stabbing his own eyes out with a fork in an effort to erase the mental images that had come to mind at those words.

Yuuko was right, after all. No matter how hard you try, you can never go back to the time when you didn't know...


	14. Intervention

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Drabble: Intervention
> 
> Rating: Uh, K+? Somewhere along that, I think.
> 
> Pairing: Doumeki - Watanuki
> 
> Words: 456 (is this still a drabble with this word count? :P)
> 
> Summary: Doumeki wasn't sure how he felt about the changes that had befallen Watanuki
> 
> Notes: Because I had to write something cheerful after the last few chapters of the original xxxholic series if I didn't want to get depressed...
> 
> Beware of spoilers for the latest chapters (mostly 185 & 186). Betaed by the simply awesome Beboots and Product Of A Sick Society.

Doumeki wasn't sure how he felt about the changes that had befallen Watanuki. He wasn't sure he was  _allowed_  to feel anything about them, since they were changes brought on by choices Watanuki had had the right to make.

Watanuki seemed determined to live the life Yuuko had left behind, and Doumeki thought he could be fine with it just as long as he was, you know,  _living_.

He'd probably miss the flailing and the screaming and the abuse -and what did that say about him, really?- but as long as Watanuki was alive and walking his own path, he'd make sure to be by his side. Doumeki was now one of his remaining links to the outside, to a normal life, and he had few enough of those left as it was. Doumeki didn't think he had the right to deprive Watanuki of such a connection just because he wasn't entirely comfortable with a Watanuki that lounged around like a contented cat, smoking and half-naked even in winter.

Not that he was complaining about the half-naked bit. It was mostly the tobacco smell that threw him off, because it reminded him of his grandfather, and, well, no matter how much he'd loved his grandfather, that wasn't a mental image he wanted to have next to a half-naked Watanuki.

However, for all Watanuki seemed intent on doing everything Yuuko once did -up to and including wearing her clothes- there was one thing that he didn't do, and Doumeki had his nagging suspicions why.

Watanuki didn't try to drink himself stupid. He actually never even touched Yuuko's impressive stash of alcoholic goodies, leaving the task of making a dent in it to Doumeki and Mokona.

And Mokona, being Mokona, wasn't happy about having to drink alone most of the time, because, much as he wanted to, Doumeki couldn't very well spend all his free time in Yuuko's -Watanuki's- shop. He was a university student, after all, and he also had his obligations as temple heir to mind.

He suspected that was why he'd once stepped into the shop to suspiciously giggling twins and a sight that would haunt him during many a lonely night: Watanuki in a state of undress Yuuko would have been proud of, a lovely flush in his cheeks and spreading down his neck, laughing madly, twirling drunkedly around the place, singing off-pitch to the top of his lungs and hugging everything in a ten-meter radius to keep himself from toppling down... including, as it happens, university students who had just walked in through the door.

Doumeki never knew what exactly Mokona had done to get Watanuki to join him in a drinking frenzy but he, for one, rather hoped he'd do it again.


End file.
